Does viewing bullying violence affect the allocation of attention in young adults?

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Does viewing bullying violence affect the allocation of attention in young adults?

Abstract:

The purpose of the current study was to experimentally test the relationship
between symptoms of inattention and vicarious experiences of bullying. The research
questions of the current study were: 1) Can vicarious bullying induce symptoms of
inattention?; 2) What happens to inattention after multiple exposures to vicarious
bullying?; and 3) Are there sex differences in inattention after exposure to bullying
experiences? The participants were graduate and undergraduate students from a private
university with a 0.2% diagnosis rate of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
Participants viewed four videos with three depicting scenarios of bullying, and after each
video, the Stroop test was used to assess inattention. Heart rate was also assessed
following each video. After finishing participation in the video phase of the experiment,
participants completed a demographic survey, a bullying experiences survey, and the
Screener for Inattentive Symptoms. The findings indicated exposure to vicarious bullying
led to an increase in symptoms of inattention. The effects appeared to be cumulative,
such that with additional exposure to vicarious bullying, a participant’s symptoms of
inattention increased. The heart rate of participants appeared to mirror the symptoms of
inattention, with heart rate increasing over the course of the experiment. There were no significant differences in reaction to vicarious bullying by sex. Implications of the
findings include the need to assess experiences with bullying when diagnosing ADHD
inattentive.